Guatemalans have two last names because the Civil Code builds a name that way. Article 4 says a person is identified by the name with which their birth is registered: the given name plus the surname of the married parents, or of the unmarried parents who recognised the child. Children of a single mother are registered with her surnames. The article does not fix an order between the two. In the US, USCIS’s Policy Manual and SSA’s rules both accept a last name with more than one part. USCIS can treat several shorter versions of the name as legal if your evidence supports them.
Article 4 does not say which surname goes first. What parents can choose, and what an adult has to do to reverse or drop a surname, is on our RENAP name and surname change page. This page covers the why, the married-name rule and how the name fits US paperwork.
Quick summary
| Question | Short answer | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Where the two surnames come from | Given name + surname of the married parents, or of unmarried parents who recognised the child | Civil Code Art. 4 |
| Single mother | Child is registered with her surnames | Civil Code Art. 4 |
| Child registered with only one surname | The mother, or whoever holds parental authority, can return to the registry to add the second | Civil Code Art. 4 |
| Married woman | Has the right to add her husband’s surname to her own; loses it on nullity or divorce | Civil Code Art. 108 |
| Changing a name | Art. 6 requires judicial authorization; a notary can also process a change under Decreto 54-77 (see our name-change page) | Civil Code Art. 6; Decreto 54-77 |
| Accent marks | An accent alone does not make a name different | Civil Code Art. 5 |
| USCIS | Legal name in US order: given, middle, family; several combinations may count as legal if supported by evidence | USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 1, Part E, Ch. 5 |
| Social Security | Family name may have more than one part; foreign-born legal name follows the immigration document | SSA POMS RM 10212.001 |
What the Civil Code says
Article 4 of the Civil Code (Decreto-Ley 106, as reformed by Decreto 38-95) sets out four rules on how a name is formed at birth registration:
- Two parents. The name is the given name plus the surname of the married parents, or of unmarried parents who recognised the child.
- Single mother. The child is registered with the mother’s surnames.
- Unknown parents. The child is registered with the name given by the person or institution that registers the birth.
- Only one surname on record. For minors already registered with a single surname, the mother, or whoever exercises parental authority (patria potestad), can go back to the Civil Registry to extend the record so it carries both surnames.
The article has no rule about the order of the two surnames. That question, including what the Constitutional Court has said about it, is on our name-change page.
Two other articles explain why the name on your birth record matters so much:
- Art. 6: people cannot change their names except with judicial authorization.
- Art. 5 (reformed by Decreto-Ley 72-84 and Decreto 8-2018): someone who constantly and publicly uses a different given name or surname, uses an incomplete name, or leaves out one of the surnames that belong to them can establish their identity by sworn statement in a public deed. The same article says an accent mark (tilde), present or missing, does not make a name different and needs no correction.
Under Art. 7, any identification or change is noted in the margin of the birth record, and it does not change civil status or prove filiation.
A married woman’s surname
Article 108 says that by marriage the wife has the right “agregar a su propio apellido el de su cónyuge” (to add her spouse’s surname to her own) and to keep it always, unless the marriage is dissolved by nullity or by divorce. Three things follow from the text:
- It is a right, not an automatic change: her own surnames stay.
- The husband’s surname is added, not substituted.
- Divorce or nullity ends the right to use it.
The article does not say how the added surname is written. Registering the addition, and getting your maiden surnames back after a divorce, are covered under special cases on our name-change page. The marriage record itself is on RENAP marriage certificate.
How two surnames fit US immigration forms
USCIS sets out how it reads names in its Policy Manual, Volume 1, Part E, Chapter 5 (current as of October 27, 2026):
- A full legal name is made up of a given name (first name), any middle names, and a family name (last name).
- Officers should check that the legal name entered in USCIS systems follows US order (given, middle, family) to avoid USCIS issuing an incorrect name on its secure identity documents.
- The manual says: “In some cultures, a person may have two first names and two last names and may use all their names or only some through customary usage.” Its example is a Mexican birth certificate reading Maria Guadalupe Gonzalez Gomez, where Gonzalez is the father’s paternal surname and Gomez the mother’s paternal surname.
- For that example, USCIS may consider the legal name to be any of Maria Guadalupe Gonzalez Gomez, Maria Gonzalez Gomez, Guadalupe Gonzalez Gomez, Maria Gonzalez or Guadalupe Gonzalez, if supported by evidence.
- After marriage, a person may keep their pre-marital name or use a married name, such as the spouse’s surname or a hyphenated name combining both.
On the naturalization form, the N-400 instructions say your current legal name is the name on your birth certificate unless it changed after birth by marriage, divorce or court order. Item 2 asks for every other name you have used since birth, including your maiden name, family name at birth, and alternate spellings or variations. Item 3 lets you ask the court to change your name when you naturalize; you do not need it if your name already changed by marriage, divorce or court order.
Social Security and two-part surnames
SSA’s operations manual (POMS) treats compound surnames as normal:
| SSA rule | What it says | POMS section |
|---|---|---|
| Family name | Full last name, surname or family name, which may have more than one part | RM 10212.001 |
| Foreign-born applicant | Legal name is the name shown on the immigration document presented, including hyphens and apostrophes, unless the name was legally changed after that document was issued (then the name-change evidence governs). F-1 and M-1 students: the name on Form I-20; J-1 exchange visitors: the name on the DS-2019 | RM 10212.001 |
| Card vs record | The card prints the name as entered; the Numident keeps spaces in last names and shows a hyphen as a space (JONES-DREW appears as JONES DREW) | RM 10205.125 |
| Field length | Last name field holds 21 characters; a longer name is entered as far as it fits, and a separate field can carry the fuller name shown on the card | RM 10205.125 |
| Order differences | Sanchez Diaz vs Diaz Sanchez vs Sanchez vs Diaz appears in SSA’s chart of immaterial (minor) discrepancies; compound surnames may come from marriage or reflect both parents’ surnames | GN 00307.101 |
If an E-Verify check fails because of how your surnames were entered, the steps are on E-Verify mismatch with two surnames. For the Guatemalan ID card itself, see Guatemala’s DPI.
Sources
- Organismo Judicial (CENADOJ), Código Civil comentado, Arts. 4-7 and 108, http://ww2.oj.gob.gt/es/QueEsOJ/EstructuraOJ/UnidadesAdministrativas/CentroAnalisisDocumentacionJudicial/pdfs/Codigos/CodigoCivilComentado_CENADOJ.pdf, read 1 November 2026
- USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 1, Part E, Chapter 5, Verification of Identifying Information, https://www.uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume-1-part-e-chapter-5, read 1 November 2026
- USCIS, Instructions for Form N-400, https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/forms/n-400instr.pdf, read 1 November 2026
- SSA POMS RM 10212.001, Defining the Legal Name for an SSN, https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0110212001, read 1 November 2026
- SSA POMS RM 10205.125, Entering NH’s Name in SSNAP, https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0110205125, read 1 November 2026
- SSA POMS GN 00307.101, Name Discrepancies Involving Foreign Evidence, https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0200307101, read 1 November 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do Guatemalans have two last names?
Because of how the law builds a name. Article 4 of Guatemala’s Civil Code says a person is identified by the name with which their birth is registered, made up of the given name and the surname of the married parents, or of the unmarried parents who recognised the child. Children of a single mother are registered with her surnames. The article does not set an order between the two surnames; for what parents can choose, see our RENAP name-change page.
Does a Guatemalan woman change her last name when she marries?
Not automatically. Civil Code Art. 108 gives the wife the right to add her husband’s surname to her own and to keep it, unless the marriage is dissolved by nullity or by divorce. It is framed as a right, so her own surnames stay either way. The article does not say how the added surname is written.
Which last name do I put on a USCIS form if I have two?
USCIS’s Policy Manual (current as of October 27, 2026) says that in some cultures a person may have two first names and two last names, and that USCIS may treat several combinations as the legal name if the evidence supports them, from the full name down to the first given name plus the father’s surname. Form N-400’s instructions define your current legal name as the name on your birth certificate unless it changed by marriage, divorce or court order, and ask you to list every other name you have used, including your family name at birth and variations.
Will Social Security accept a two-part last name?
Yes. SSA’s policy (POMS RM 10212.001) says a family name may have more than one part, and that a foreign-born person’s legal name is the name shown on the immigration document presented, unless the name was legally changed after that document was issued. SSA’s record (the Numident) keeps the space in a last name and replaces a hyphen with a space; the last-name field holds 21 characters (POMS RM 10205.125).
Can I swap the order of my surnames or drop one as an adult?
Not by simply asking at RENAP. Civil Code Art. 6 says people cannot change their names except with judicial authorization. Art. 5 offers a separate route, identification by sworn statement in a public deed, for someone who has constantly and publicly used a different or incomplete name or left out one of their surnames. The routes, costs and steps are on our RENAP name-change page.
